NBPA President Derek Fisher has sent out an e-mail to all NBA players inviting them to attend a meeting in Houston Saturday where the union is expected to hold elections to fill vacant seats on the Exec Committee. It is also widely expected that NBPA leaders at the meeting may vote to terminate Exec Dir Billy Hunter, who has been placed on leave. However, Fisher did not mention Hunter by name in the letter sent out to NBA players late Tuesday night.
The law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP will be at the meeting to answer any questions about the report they issued to the union in January, sources said. That report found Hunter did not act in the players' best interest and that his current employment contract was not properly approved under the union's bylaws. Paul-Weiss found that only two members of the nine-member Exec Committee, Fisher and Spurs F Matt Bonner, are current members of the Exec Committee and recommended the union hold elections for the other vacant seats.
“You will notice changes in the way our meetings will now run as we will operate by the Constitution & Bylaws along with Government Regulations,” Fisher wrote in the e-mail, which was obtained by SportsBusiness Journal. “We will have an outside accounting firm handling elections to ensure they are unbiased, legal counsel on hand and full transparency as we advance this organization into a new era. It is imperative that each Player Representative, Alternate Player Representative, and/or Interim Player Representative attend. Each team has a vote and we want your voices to be heard. I also encourage General Membership to attend as well.”
